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diatribe - 4 dictionary results

di⋅a⋅tribe

[dahy-uh-trahyb]
–noun
a bitter, sharply abusive denunciation, attack, or criticism: repeated diatribes against the senator.

Origin:
1575–85; < L diatriba < Gk diatrib pastime, study, discourse, deriv. of diatríbein to rub away (dia- dia- + tríbein to rub)


tirade, harangue.
di·a·tribe   (dī'ə-trīb')   
n.  A bitter, abusive denunciation.

[Latin diatriba, learned discourse, from Greek diatribē, pastime, lecture, from diatrībein, to consume, wear away : dia-, intensive pref.; see dia- + trībein, to rub; see terə-1 in Indo-European roots.]
Word History: Listening to a lengthy diatribe may seem like a waste of time, an attitude for which there is some etymological justification. The Greek word diatribē, the ultimate source of our word, is derived from the verb diatrībein, made up of the prefix dia-, "completely," and trībein, "to rub," "to wear away, spend, or waste time," "to be busy." The verb diatrībein meant "to rub hard," "to spend or waste time," and the noun diatribē meant "wearing away of time, amusement, serious occupation, study," as well as "discourse, short ethical treatise or lecture, debate, argument." It is the serious occupation of time in discourse, lecture, and debate that gave us the first use of diatribe recorded in English (1581), in the now archaic sense "discourse, critical dissertation." The critical element of this kind of diatribe must often have been uppermost, explaining the origin of the current sense of diatribe, "a bitter criticism."

Diatribe

Di"a*tribe\ (?; 277), n. [L. diatriba a learned discussion, Gr. ?, prop., a wearing away of time, fr. ? to rub away, spend time; dia` through + ? to rub: cf. L. terere, F. trite: cf. F. diatribe.] A prolonged or exhaustive discussion; especially, an acrimonious or invective harangue; a strain of abusive or railing language; a philippic.

The ephemeral diatribe of a faction. --John Morley.

diatribe 
1581, from L. diatriba "learned discussion," from Gk. diatribe "discourse, study," lit. "a wearing away (of time)," from dia- "away" + tribein "to wear, rub." Sense of "invective" is 1804, apparently from Fr.
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